The popularity of Apple Computer's iPod digital music players is helping it sell more Macs, but so far it hasn't been enough to spark a rise in the company's share of the personal computer market. According to research firm Gartner, worldwide PC shipments totaled 57 million units in the first quarter of 2006, representing a 13.1 percent increase over the same period last year. But in that time, Apple's share of the worldwide market slipped from 2.2 percent to a mere 2.0 percent.

Once upon a time I made the switch and threw down over $2k of my well earned money for a Powerbook. I thoroughly enjoyed using it and Mac OS X for 2 years and then it broke. Since then, I've switched back to non-Apple computer such as Dells and have been very content.

I keep wanting to buy a new MacBook but a Dell e1505 is very similar in size and specs but the Dell costs so much less, actually almost half as much! I don't want to hear any of the nonsense that Dells put crappy parts in their laptops, because a comparable MacBook comes with a slower HD and less RAM (even on the high end model). Whereas they both have the same processors, video cards, comparable wifi cards... etc.

What it comes down to is how much you value your computing experience which is a personal issue. Some feel that paying twice as much to actually enjoy a device they use very frequently is justifiable and some, as we can see the majority, chose to justify a more economic option. ... Even though they both get the job done, for me and most professionals I know. For example both Windows XP and Mac OS X edit my images with Photoshop and files with Microsoft Office. I can play my tunes both with iTunes and edit with Dreamweaver.

To hear that Apple's market share ain't climbing is such obvious news, and that's because most people think with their pockets first then for their experience. Apple will never increase market share unless it offers more for what people are paying for OR lowers the price in relation to the specs of the machines they sell.